Exterior:
I never saw a silicon silver or the satin dark grey wheels at the dealership but ordered them anyway. I am a little disappointed that the color differs so much from the online configurator toll on the LR website. The body paint has tinges of green and gold and seems to change color slightly in different light, whereas the configurator image looks more grey metallic. I'm not unhappy with the silicon silver, but beware the color differences online and in person.
What I really do like about the color is the contrast with the gloss black panels. If you covet the profile illusion where the lower belt line pinches upward on the rear fender, a lighter body color is a must. It also contrasts fairly well with the copper accents in the R-Dynamic package.

The wheels are another story altogether, and are the only thing that I actually regret about my Velar order. Again, the color difference in the online configuration tool and actual color is significant. I thought the wheels would closely match the body paint, but I was way off. If I had to do it again, I definitely would opt for the shinier 5047 wheels.

The gloss black plastic on the pillars and lower belt line look gorgeous, but they scratch very easily. After two washes using extreme caution with a foam cannon and 2-bucket wash method, I still have some fine swirl marks that I can see getting worse over time. I'll definitely be getting these areas corrected and covered with film at some point.

You can see the differences in online configurator image and actual body/wheel colors.

Interior:
I absolutely love the light oyster/ebony Windsor leather combo, but wonder if the $1,380 full leather upgrade is really worth it. It adds leather to the upper dash and upper door top roll, two areas you never really touch. The stitching does look nice, however.
As pretty as it is, the light oyster leather is going to be a pain to keep clean, especially the inside door handle on the driver side. If I look closely, I can already see slight dirt/discoloration.

Drivetrain:
I opted for the 247-hp gas engine (P250) and have been pleased with the performance so far. Initially I was worried that engine choice would be under-matched for a car the size and weight of the Velar. While the engine sound is underwhelming and "tinny", thankfully it performs much better than it sounds. The 8-speed ZF transmission does a great job with smooth shift points, and throttle response is good off the line. It can really come alive depending on what vehicle setting is selected, and I spend most of my time in the dynamic mode while my wife prefers comfort mode.

Head-up display:
I can't imagine the Velar without the HUD now that I have had a chance to experience it. Graphics are sharp and bright and the incoming call and navigation graphics are great to have. The only negative is I drive with polarized sunglasses, and the HUD graphics almost completely disappear when wearing them. The first pic below is the HUD without glasses; the second one is HUD taken through the lens of my sunglasses. Major difference...

Auto Start/Stop:
I read some bad feedback on the auto start/stop feature being too abrupt, but I haven’t found that to be the case. If you slowly take your foot off brake and let the engine start up before applying gas it is a relatively smooth start.
There are a couple gripes about this system. First, the stop function often only lasts for ~20 seconds before starting back up, even if my foot remains on the brake. Seems like the whole point of this system is to save fuel, but what good is it if the engine comes back on and I’m standing still at a stoplight for another minute?
The other complaint is it engages too quickly. I have two stop signs in my neighborhood where I come to a complete stop for a split second before proceeding, but the system engages anyway, shutting down and immediately starting back up. I imagine this can’t be good over the life of the ignition system.

Infotainment:
Major disappointment in my dealership PDI here. I specifically asked my dealer sales rep to make sure the ICTP was updated to the most recent software. I neglected to check this when picking up the car as everything seemed to be working correctly I assumed it had been done.
Then the gremlins that have been widely reported started to show up- black screen, no USB connection, etc. I checked the ICTP software version, and it was the original stock version, not the 17C3 or 4 version I expected.
I called the dealer service manager who told me they didn't update it because it wasn't in Topix (apparently the sales rep never relayed my request to have it updated anyway). Service manager checked and said the 17C4 was on hold and that a 17C6 version would be out no later than April 19 and that I should wait until then. We will see what happens next week with that.

Last edited by wr3gl on Mon Apr 16, 2018 12:06 am, edited 1 time in total.

17C6 huh? now that's interesting. Thanks for sharing the detailed feedback overall. I personally like your combo with the wheels, but would be interesting to see a side by side of the shiny rims next to them. Keep us posted as you continue to use it!

I have the oyster/ebony interior as well and absolutely love it. Everyone assumes it will be a pain to keep clean but it's really not that bad. I probably clean it once every 2 months (with the LR supplied spray cleaner and microfiber cloth) and then give it a very thorough cleaning every 6 months with Connolly's hide cleaner. I used this stuff for 7 years with my Ivory RR Sport and it looked very good when trading it in. However with my Velar's driver seat I'm already seeing some cracking on the edges at the front which is surprising after only 8 months. I think this leather is not as thick and durable as on my 2010 Sport. Anyway most people with ebony interiors are sitting on filthy black seats where you can't see the dirt and I don't really want that either. I've had 3 light interiors in a row and find it's worth the extra maintenance but that's just my personal opinion.

Silicon silver is awesome and I love the color. It's a classy color and suits the design in my opinion. Anyway congratulations! It's a great car.

The colour (or should I say color ?) looks great. Here in the UK that colour is a premium paint costing almost an extra £1000. It looks so good it ought to be part of the regular range for the standard price.

How is the camera system? I have it in my a4 and live it but heard not so good on jlr products.

Is it clear and big enough and does it activate automatically when reversing?

The camera system takes a few “button” pushes to get to and select, but it works great and video is as good as can be expected. The system displays two cameras at a time by default, but you can select just one or the 360 view.
I’ll try to take some screenshots for you.
There is a way to create a customized home screen on the upper ICTP display, and I will try to do so with the various cameras.